Saturday, 14 February 2015

PNoy’s resignation ‘more urgent’—religious leaders

PNoy’s resignation ‘more urgent’—religious leaders

MANILA, Feb. 14, 2015—A group of religious leaders from the
Catholic Church and other Christian denominations, has renewed its call
for the resignation of President Benigno S. Aquino III, implying that
the “Mamasapano massacre” and its aftermath have made it even “more
urgent and imperative”.

The
National Transformation Council (NTC) comprising religious leaders from
Protestant churches and the Catholic Church, stresses its call for
President Benigno Aquino III's resignation. (Photo: NTC)

“We, bishops of the Catholic and other Christian churches, have often
been asked if there is moral basis to this growing demand. Even long
before the unfortunate events, the National Transformation Council (NTC)
has strongly articulated that the President step down. Recent
developments have made the call even more urgent and imperative,” says
NTC in a joint statement issued Feb. 13.

Fresh start

NTC demands the whole government to step down in order for the country to transform through a new and fresh start.

The group’s members further call the Jan. 25 incident the summit of
Pnoy’s mishandling of many obligations, which allegedly reveals the
“subterfuge of illegal, unconstitutional and immoral foundation” of his
regime, adding that their plea for his and his cohorts’ resignation
echoes the general feeling of the people.

Illegitimate claim

According to them, Aquino’s misrule clearly indicates his
illegitimate claim to the position and that his continuing stay
endangers the lives of Filipinos and adversely affects the moral
landscape of the nation.

Citing “Gaudium et Spes” (Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the
Modern World), NTC shares that “at all times and in all places, the
Church should have the freedom to teach her doctrine and to pass moral
judgment in those matters which regard the common good and fundamental
rights and freedoms.”

It adds, “The Church and her pastors must never abandon their duty to
denounce evil and to guide men, women and children in their active
search for the truth and the good. Moral evil must be removed from the
political and social system. This task, the Church and the political
community cannot just leave them in the hands of politicians, no matter
how virtuous they might be.”

Wanted: Honest leaders

Amid the challenges modern society faces, the group points out it is
“now, more than ever, necessary” that political leaders be outstanding
for honesty, integrity, and commitment to the common good.NTC explains this is the way officials can preserve the rich human
and natural resources with which God has blessed the country; marshal
the moral resources needed to face the demands of the present; and pass
on to coming generations a society of authentic justice, solidarity and
peace.

Christian challenge

Moreover, the religious leaders underscore that theirs is the
challenge to answer the “call of our Christian faith and life,” urging
Filipinos to let go of their comfort zones, go to the peripheries, and
find the poor, the powerless, the marginalized and the neglected.

“With courage, we confront the seat of power and privilege. No doubt,
the call on Mr. Aquino to step down is profoundly a moral issue that
can no longer be ignored,” they add.

Non-Catholic Christian communities were represented by Bishop Butch
Belgica of the Christian Bishops of the Philippines and Pastor Arthur
Corpus of the United Church of Manila.

Discernment

Meanwhile, CBCP as an institutional body has yet to make its own
official, collective position on a call for presidential resignation.

In a letter issued Feb. 4, CBCP head Archbishop Socrates B. Villegas
of Lingayen-Dagupan states that whether or not Aquino should resign and
“yield the powers of his high office to a lawful successor is a judgment
that he must make, after prayerful discernment, and in all humility and
judiciousness.”

The CBCP chief, however, endorses the creation of a credible Truth
Commission or a fact-finding body, believing any inquiry by a police
body like a Board of Inquiry, “no matter how veridical its findings,”
will compromise the objectivity of the investigation.

“Before we have all the facts, however, the CBCP cannot morally join
in the calls for his resignation, leaving this decision to his humble
and prayerful discernment of his capacity to lead and the support his
has not only from officials of government but from members of Philippine
society,” Villegas adds. (Raymond A. Sebastián/CBCP News)